The Grace of Lord Gaura
BY: JANANIVASA DASA
Sep 29, USA (SUN) — In the Forward of Caitanya-caritamrta, Adi-Lila, Volume One, it is written: “At a time when, in the West, man was directing his explorative spirit toward studying the structure of the physical universe and circumnavigating the world in search of new oceans and continents, Sri Krsna Caitanya, in the East, was inaugurating and masterminding a revolution directed inward, toward a scientific understanding of the highest knowledge of man's spiritual nature.”
It is particularly noteworthy that Lord Caitanya's revolution is directed inward, to the core of one's heart, for therein resides the source of perfectly understanding the transcendental science of self-identification. If one misses this prime point, that Lord Gaura's entire mission is directed inward, toward a scientific understanding of the highest knowledge of man's spiritual nature, then he is already defeated in his attempt to understand the Lord's mission - to bestow perfect self-realization through the potency and the mercy of the holy name and the distribution of spiritual devotional service.
Man's spiritual nature pertains to the nature of his true identity, the spirit soul within the material body, as well as to the purpose for which he is existing. Unless one understands that Lord Caitanya's revolution is aimed against the body conception of life, and that the body conception is defeated only by realizing one's real spiritual identity through the process of understanding and identifying with the presence of Krsna within the same body, he will remain in the unhappy state if illusion in which he was born. Prabhupada: “One who is ignorant of scientific knowledge of the soul does not look inside the body to find happiness in the soul. The living being, covered by the material body, does not see the happiness within him self, but runs after happiness in the material world. When one understands his real identity as spiritual being, he can understand the supreme spiritual being, Krsna, and the real happiness exchanged between Krsna and one's self.”(7-13-29)
In the Preface of the Adi-Lila Srila Prabhupada writes: “Lord Caitanya teaches that Srimad Bhagavatam is the spotless narration of transcendental knowledge and that the highest goal in human life is to develop unalloyed love for Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead.” Since transcendental knowledge is defined in sastra as knowledge of the self, the Superself and their relationship and since the highest goal of human life, to develop love for Krsna, is attainable only when that relationship is established, it is very clear why the Lord's mission is directed inward, toward the secret residence of Lord Visnu. Srila Prabhupada proceeds: “Lord Caitanya's teachings are identical to those given by Lord Kapila, the original propounder of sankyha-yoga, the sankyha system of philosophy. This authorized system of yoga teaches meditation on the transcendental form of the Lord. There is no question of meditating on something void or impersonal. When one can meditate on the transcendental form of Lord Visnu, even without practicing involved sitting postures, such meditation is called perfect samadhi. Lord Krsna says that of all yogis, the greatest is the one who can constantly think of the Lord within the core of his heart with love and devotion.”
Srila Prabhupada further explains that the easiest means of achieving the result of the sankyha-system of yoga in this age is sincere chanting of the holy name of the Lord, but the goal remains the same, to meditate on the transcendental form of Lord Visnu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead within the core of one's heart. Success in sankhya-yoga produces the confidential knowledge by which one philosophically distinguishes matter from spirit and astanga-yoga is the stage of meditation in which the surrendered soul links up with the Supreme. By the grace of Srila Prabhupada and Lord Caitanya authentic meditation can be practiced and accomplished in this age, in all phases of one's daily activities, simply by sincere chanting and by practicing the purpose of chanting. The purpose of chanting is to cleanse the impurities from the heart so that we can directly perceive the presence of both the Supreme Lord and our own selves as transcendental entities. One's eternal loving relationship with the Lord begins with this perception and matures into perpetual, spontaneous loving exchange between Krsna and His fully surrendered devotee. Practicing the purpose of chanting means performing the transcendental religious principle of respectful regard for the presence of Lord Visnu, or Krsna, within everyone's heart. The highest goal of life, love for the Lord, always begins with our connection with His Supersoul presence and cannot be otherwise attained. Srila Prabhupada: “The Supreme Lord is the Supersoul of everything and therefore the supreme conception of affection is realized. The conception of affection is due to the relationship of soul to soul. As such, there is an unlimited flow of everlasting happiness without fear of its being broken.” (2-7-47)
It is Lord Krsna's desire and His design that we come to Him in this way, by approaching His presence within the core of our hearts. Srila Prabhupada confirms: “There is not even the slightest difference between the potency of the Supreme Person and that of His plenary expansion as Paramatma. Great sages have therefore concluded that the process of meditation is designed so that the individual living entity may concentrate his attention on the lotus feet of the Supersoul form. (Visnu) That is the real form of samadhi.” (KB, v-2, pg. 256-257) Srila Prabhupada: “The supreme spiritual master is Krsna, who is therefore known as caitya-guru. This refers to Supersoul, who is sitting in everyone` s heart. The conclusion, therefore, is that meditation means thinking of the Lord within.
Whether one comes to that stage by the astanga-yoga system or the method recommended in the sastra especially for this present age - to constantly chant the holy name of the Lord - the goal is to meditate on the Supreme Personality of Godhead.”(4-8-44) Srila Prabhupada has instructed that ultimately there is only one religious principle, and that is to follow the order of the Supreme Lord. The Lord's order is that His devotees should stay on the spiritual platform, fully surrendered in constant communion with Him. The secret of reviving our constitutional connection in perpetual remembrance of Krsna is divulged once again by the pure Vaisnava, Prahlada Maharaja: “Actually the truth about religious principles is extremely confidential. Nonetheless, it can be understood very easily if one adopts the principles of religion. The process of religion is enunciated by the Supreme Lord, because He is the Supreme Authority. One should always remember the Supreme Personality of Godhead in His localized representation as the Paramatma, who is situated in the core of every living entity's heart. Thus one should offer respect to every living entity according to that living entity's position or manifestation.” (7-30,31,32)
Simply by faithful performance of this very subtle, very simple, but extremely potent transcendental principle of religion, one can achieve the platform of absolute knowledge, in which he or she is always aware of Krsna's presence. In absolute knowledge there is self-realization, pure bhakti and deep loving exchange between the Lord and His devotee. Absolute knowledge is total enlightenment and it is the highest benefit of successful chanting of the Lord's holy name. Such enlightenment awards automatic entry into bhagavata-dharma, in which the devotee realizes his eternal relationship in love with Krsna as servant and friend and understands that the Lord's mission in this universe is centered here, on planet earth. Persons lacking perfect knowledge, however, cannot comprehend what is happening around them. Because partially surrendered persons identify with the Lord's illusory energy, instead of surrendering to the indwelling source of their existence and enlightenment, they remain in the mire of maya's body conception.
As confirmed by Lord Siva in his prayer to Lord Vamanadeva: “Your unlimited potential activities are experienced by the most enlightened devotees, but those who are bewildered by the spell of Your external energy identify themselves with this material world and become attached to society, friendship and love. Thus they embrace the three fold miseries of material existence and are subject to the dualities of pain and pleasure.” (KB, v-2, pg.66) Lacking enlightenment, neophyte devotees do not surrender to Krsna's presence as the localized four handed Visnu and due to this false pride they are not privy to His plan and have no practical function in His present activities. S.P. “When by learning from the self-realized spiritual master one actually engages himself in the service of Lord Visnu, functional devotional service begins.” (Adi, ch.1, 47) Unaware of Krsna's presence and thus having no meaningful relationship with Him, such persons are advised to concentrate on His pastimes. A person situated in bhagavata-dharma also deeply appreciates the pastimes of the Lord but he is even more interested in the current, unseen activities of Lord Gaura because he understands the Lord's revolution, His desires and His direction and thus comes to experience the activity of his own functional service.
Lord Siva has revealed the two choices of direction for all devotees. We can choose to be a society person only and tend to family, friends and other personal interest, or we can choose the way of enlightenment, and surrender to its only source. S.P.: “All living entities are covered by the modes of material nature, and the fire of knowledge can be ignited only by the Supreme Personality of Godhead when one takes Him within one` s heart.”(8-3-16) “For a devotee who has taken the lotus feet of the Lord within his heart, the Lord gives special enlightenment, known as jnana-dipa, by special mercy from within.”(8-3-16) Because he can perceive Krsna's presence and taste His transcendental pleasure, a devotee endowed with absolute knowledge, instead of concentrating only on the pastimes of the Lord, which are a history of His glorious activities, realizes that Krsna depends on His devotees and thus he understands his responsibility of participation in the present activities of the Lord. Others are advised to take shelter of His pastimes. S.P. “For persons not very advanced in absolute knowledge of the Supreme, Lord Krsna exhibits his pastimes.”(KB, v-1, pg.21) Lord Caitanya's mission is so glorious that it is sure to be the crown jewel of attraction in all future narrations of the Lord's pastimes. Those fortunate souls who are graced with special enlightenment by sincere surrender to His Supersoul presence, and thus empowered to act according to His orders from within, will be functional participants in the glorious, history making activities of Lord Gaura.
One should not think that Lord Caitanya's mission has come and gone. The Lord has already inaugurated His revolution, that is true, and Srila Prabhupada has planted the transcendental seed of the mission in the west and all over the world, but the fruition of His merciful mission has not yet commenced, although it is presently poised to do so. It could begin in a week, in a year or in a future generation. Our willingness to fully surrender to His presence is a major factor governing the timing of His mission. The Lord is patiently waiting for His devotees to purify our hearts, realize the potency within our selves and proceed in a co-operative spirit under His direction from within. Lord Gaura, the Supersoul in everyone's heart, is very much depending on the faithful followers of Srila Prabhupada to co-operate in the germination of His transcendental revolution.
The Lord's reliance on His devotees is another aspect of His special mercy. Krsna, or Lord Caitanya, is certainly independent and His reliance on His devotees is a display of His transcendental generosity. Devotees, however, are factually dependent on Krsna for everything and accepting one` s true subordinate position is an important factor of full surrender. Depending exclusively on the Lord's protection, and relying totally on His special mercy flowing freely from within their hearts, fully enlightened devotees will easily succeed in spreading the grace of Lord Gaura through the potency of the holy name and the distribution of pure and direct devotional service. The present stagnant condition of the Lord's mission is due to false pride, ignorance and other impurities of the heart which result in flagrant disregard for the only access to pure devotional service.
To engage in and distribute real devotional service one must surrender to it's beginning. Because of false pride neophyte persons, incorrectly thinking that they are already situated in a transcendental relationship with the ultimate form of the Lord, stubbornly disregard the only authentic approach to real bhakti-yoga. S.P.: “When one actually becomes perfect, by meditation he can see (visualize or perceive) the supreme friend (Supersoul) and surrender unto Him. This is the beginning of bhakti-yoga, or actual life in Krsna consciousness.”(7-13-44) Surrender to Krsna's Supersoul presence in devotional service is the conclusion of the Vedas. The conclusion of the Vedas, however, is not the conclusion of spiritual life, but rather, it is it's only authentic beginning. S.P. “When one becomes attached to the Supreme Personality of Godhead on the transcendental platform, thee is no longer any logical argument on the bases of revealed scripture, nor are there any considerations of such conclusions. That is His transcendental quality that is the essence of all transcendental sweetness.”
The successful devotee, while occupying a material body, establishes a relationship with Supersoul through the process of full surrender and this relationship is very prominent because it is the center point of understanding the Lord's desires and receiving His direction for all activity in spiritual devotional service. Spiritual perfection, or pure Krsna consciousness always begins with this devotional connection with Supersoul and once begun, there is no limit to our transcendental friendship in love with the Lord. When, by the grace of Supersoul, a devotee is elevated to the spiritual platform, his relationship with Bhagavan also becomes a transcendental reality, thus the devotee becomes acquainted with Krsna from within and without and in this way actual Krsna consciousness is established in eternity. Srila Prabhupada: “Understanding that God is seated in everyone` s heart, however, is not sufficient. One has to be acquainted with God from within and without and one must take dictation from within and without to be a man in Krsna consciousness.”(3-15-15)
Establishing one's real relationship with the ultimate form of the Lord does not mean, however, that one's relationship with His Supersoul feature comes to an end. Once established, there is no end to our blissful association in relationship with the presence of the Lord. S.P.: “Sri Krsna, in His Paramatma feature, lives in the hearts of all living beings in both the transcendental and mundane creations.” (Adi, ch.2, 46) In the spiritual energy nothing is diminished, but rather increases unlimitedly in potency and pleasure. “Devotional service begins with the relationship of the individual soul with the Supreme Soul (Supersoul), or Krsna and Krsna's devotees and when one attains it, there is no question of falling down.”(3-21-12) “Once one is fixed in the devotional service to the Lord, his position of transcendental service cannot be destroyed, and the pleasure and the service simply increase unlimitedly.” (TLK pg. 227) An advanced devotee realizes that Paramatma is Krsna, Himself, and ultimately, sees little or no distinction between Them.
It is predominantly false pride that keeps persons on the mental or kanistha-adikari platform, unaware of Krsna's presence everywhere, or even within their own heart. Lord Caitanya is very liberal with His mercy, but He does not enlighten anyone who refuses to detach himself from false pride. While disregarding the conclusive instructions and the actual direction of sastra, material devotees, engaged in preliminary principles only, do not accept the Vedic conclusion and are thus unable to revive their loving relationship with the exalted Supersoul presence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Anyone, however, in any condition of life, who is willing to rid himself of false pride, lust, anger, greed and all other material desires and attachments of the heart by simple, sincere surrender to the Lord's presence there, can become enlightened by the grace of Lord Gaura, and easily attain the perfection of life. Others, who are not willing to conform to the Vedic conclusion, must simply continue with their gradual, materialistic approach to the Lord and should be very careful not to offend devotees.
Srila Madhavacarya explains the mentality and limitations of those who choose to remain on the mundane platform. A kanistha-adikari has no idea that the Supreme Lord has the power to exist outside a church or temple. Furthermore, being puffed up by his own ceremonial worship, a kanishta-adikari cannot imagine that anyone is more pious or religious than he, and he is not even aware that other devotees are more advanced. Thus he cannot understand the madhyama or uttama standard of devotional service, and sometimes, because of this false pride, he criticizes the more advanced devotees of the Lord, neglects them, or simply has no understanding of their exalted position as preachers or completely self-realized souls. Another symptom of the kanistha-adhikari is that he is infatuated by the material qualifications of so-called great materialistic persons. Having a body concept of life himself, he is attracted by material opulence and thus minimizes the position of the Supreme Lord, Visnu. If such materialistic devotees follow the rules and regulations of Deity worship, they will gradually be elevated to a higher standard and eventually become pure devotees of the Lord, unless they commit offenses against other devotees, in which case their advancement will be checked. (11-2-47)
Simply by realizing and embracing the Vedic conclusion, the sincere soul surrenders to his supreme friend, who then totally reveals the true import of Vedic knowledge. Thus refreshed in spiritual understanding, the realized soul can finally follow the Lord's direction. S.P.: “The Supersoul is situated in everyone` s heart, and when one is advanced in Vedic knowledge, the Supersoul gives him direction.”(7-3-30) It should be noted that any sincere soul who understands and embraces the Vedic conclusion very quickly becomes advanced in Vedic knowledge by the grace of Lord Caitanya and thus becomes empowered to participate in His revolution. This direction from the Supersoul presence of Lord Gaura is precisely the empowerment needed to move forward with His transcendental mission. When surrendered devotees understand that the Supersoul is none other than Lord Caitanya and that whatever success one is able to accomplish is due totally to His direction, there will finally be progress in spreading His divine mission. S.P.: “Lord Gaura, who is the all-pervading Supersoul, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, appears as a great saint and powerful mystic.” (Adi, 2, 22) As soon as one considers oneself the doer, however, he is defeated by his false pride and remains a powerless pretender. Real empowerment and authentic humility are explained by His Divine Grace: “An empowered devotee sees and feels himself to be the lowest of men, for he knows that whatever he does is due to the inspiration given by the Lord in the heart.”(Madhya, 19-35)
In Absolute knowledge one receives understanding and dictation in the presence of and directly from the Absolute. One does not have to be very intelligent in the material sense of the term, for the qualifying principle for attainment of absolute knowledge is simple submissiveness to the infallible instructions of the Absolute Truth. It is very easy for a surrendered soul to follow the Lord's instructions. Lord Krsna instructs that we should always think of Him. He also gives the process by which one is easily able to do so. In the presence of Srila Sukadeva Gosvami, Maharaja Pariksit is again explaining this transcendental process in very simple terms: “One's mind can be pacified only when he simply thinks of Krsna in full Krsna consciousness. This does not mean that one has to be very thoughtful, but one simply has to understand that Krsna, the Absolute Truth, is all- pervasive, by His localized aspect as Paramatma. If only one can think that Krsna, as Paramatma, is everywhere, even within the atom, then one can perfect the thinking, feeling and willing function of his mind. The perfect devotee does not see the material world as it appears to the material eyes, but he sees everywhere the presence of his worshipable Lord in His Paramatma feature.” (KB, V-2, pg. 175) Purport by Srila Prabhupada: “Upon hearing these statements of Maharaja Pariksit, Sukadeva Gosvami became overwhelmed with devotional ecstasy because of King Pariksit's advanced understanding of the Vaisnava philosophy.”
It is stated in the introduction of this same text, Adi-Lila, Volume One (pg. 6): “Lord Caitanya` s teachings begin at the point of surrender to Krsna - at the point where one gives up material attachment.” Srila Prabhupada teaches that the term devotee actually means pure devotee. In the same way of understanding, the word surrender, in it's true since, means full surrender. Since Lord Gaura's teachings begin at the point of full surrender, which is the conclusion of Srimad Bhagavatam, one who has not realized this conclusion, who has not directed his surrender inward, toward the Supersoul presence of Lord Caitanya, will not be qualified to directly participate in the functional distribution of His grace. Lord Gaura's intentions are to destroy the influence of maya by revealing His own presence. Full surrender means surrendering our lives to following the direction of the Lord in the heart and enlightenment means dovetailing with His transcendental intelligence. There can be no substantial progress in Lord Caitanya's mission until at least some devotees become enlightened and empowered by sincere surrender to His presence within their heats. Therefore, it should be repeated consistently and loudly that this dovetailing, or surrendering process is the only approach to the transcendental platform of pure Krsna consciousness. Srila Prabhupada: “This super consciousness can be attained by dovetailing individual consciousness with the consciousness of the Supreme. This dovetailing process is called surrender, or Krsna consciousness.”(3-15-15)
Srila Prabhupada has instructed that only Lord Caitanya can take his place so it is important to understand that for a devotee, surrendering to Lord Visnu, or Supersoul, is nothing less and nothing different than fully surrendering to Govinda, Lord Gaura, or any other form of the Lord. It is simply a matter of proper understanding “He is perfectly and eternally present in Goloka Vrndavana in Vakuntha. He is nevertheless, all-pervading. The all-pervading feature of the Lord is called the Supersoul.” (Adi-1, 53) Remembering that the Lord first appeared in the prison house of Kamsa in His four handed Visnu form and immediately assumed His two handed form upon being requested by mother Devaki, and that after completing His pastimes, again transformed into His four handed form, one can easily accept the sameness of these two, and all other forms of the Lord. He assumes various forms for His different pastimes and functions by the agency of His internal energy, but the potency, quality, and purpose of the Lord does not change and this knowledge is a very important part of understanding what Krsna is.
Srila Prabhupada: “He is the Supersoul, the supreme spirit, and His pleasure is beyond the material conception. The pleasure potency of Krsna's internal energy is a most difficult subject matter, and unless one understands what Krsna is, one cannot understand it.” (Adi-Lila, intro. pg. 9) The most common misconception among neophyte devotees is thinking that they must choose between Bhagavan and Paramatma as to which one to surrender to or establish a relationship with. Such imperfect understanding is simply another aspect of maya's delusion of duality by which she keeps personally motivated persons from advancing in Krsna consciousness.
All misconceptions are destroyed by the transcendental message of the Srimad Bhagavatam, which surpass even the instructions of the Bhagavad-gita: “Tattva, the Absolute Truth is experienced in three features. Even after coming to the platform understanding tattva, one must worship Bhagavan, Visnu and His expansions, or one is not yet perfect.”(5-12-2) In the beginning of his surrender to the Lord, the neophyte devotee generally distinguishes between Brahman, Paramatma and Bhagavan while trying to achieve an understanding of each of them. When a devotee advances, by the grace of the spiritual master and the Supreme Lord, he comes to understand that all three features together are in fact Krsna, Himself. At this point the devotee begins to enjoy the internal pleasure potency of the Lord by reciprocation in spontaneous devotional service and is eternally situated on the spiritual platform of perfect knowledge. As Srila Prabhupada is confirming on Pg.48 of “The Teachings of Lord Kapila”: “Variety is the mother of enjoyment and Brahman realization or Paramatma realization (alone) does not give us steady ananda, bliss. When one understands Brahman, Paramatma and Bhagavan are all Krsna, one's bliss increases, as when milk and sugar are mixed a variety of sweets can be enjoyed.”
Srila Prabhupada: “It is not that Krsna is simply in Vaikuntha or Golaka Vrndavan. He is everywhere.” (TLK pg. 34) “Brahman, Paramatma and Bhagavan are not different.” (TLK pg.46)
Instead of accepting the plain conclusive truths of sastra, personally motivated persons try to arrange all philosophical understanding in accordance with their subjective points of view. Sincere souls, however, are always objective and open minded and thus their relationship with the Lord is established perfectly in accordance with conclusive Vedic evidence. Sri Krsnadasa Kaviraja: “Learned transcendentalist who know the Absolute Truth say that it is non-dual knowledge and is called impersonal Brahman, the localized Paramatma and the Personality of Godhead.” (Adi-2-11) Purport by Srila Prabhupada: “The absolute conception of a pure devotee, however, includes all others. A devotee does not see anything except in its relationship with Krsna, and therefore his realization is the most perfect of all.” (Adi-2-11)
As evidenced in the previous and following instruction Srila Prabhupada ultimately makes no distinction between Krsna and Supersoul: “The first business of a transcendentalist is to always keep his mind on Krsna. A transcendentalist should always try to keep his mind on the Superself.” (Bg. 6-10) It is again especially noteworthy that one's eternal, transcendental relationship with the Lord always begins at the point of his association with the Supersoul, by whose grace he can very easily realize the total conception of the Absolute Truth. Love for Krsna, pure bhakti and the super, clever consciousness needed to please the Lord, are dependent on our relationship with His Paramatma presence. Relationships require association and as His Divine Grace is again reminding; “The Lord who associates with the living entity is the Paramatma, or supreme living being.” (Adi, 2, 9)
So, accepting the non-different aspect of Krsna's various forms, and realizing the nature of Lord Gaura's grace is to reveal His own presence, the sincere devotee might inquire as to what qualification is needed to take advantage of such an indescribable opportunity. As usual, Srila Prabhupada supplies the perfect answer: “His (Paramatma) existence can be realized by one who has the single qualification of submissiveness and who thereby becomes a surrendered soul. The development of submissiveness is the cause of proportionate spiritual realization by which one can ultimately meet the Supreme in person, as a man meets another man face to face. Because of his development of transcendental attachment for the Supreme Lord, a surrendered soul feels the presence of his beloved everywhere, and all his senses are engaged in the loving service of the Lord. Thus the Lord is manifest to a pure devotee from within and without. This is one of the mysteries of the devotional relationship in which a devotee is bound by a tie of spontaneous love. To achieve this love should be the goal of life for every living being.” (Adi-1-55)
As His Grace has just pointed out, one of the main mysteries of reviving our devotional relationship with Krsna is that He reveals Himself to His surrendered devotee from within and without. Because of the various instructions in sastra concerning the Supersoul feature of Krsna that are intended for different types of yogis, and impersonal transcendentalist, a devotee's conception of Paramatma may sometimes be clouded in the mystery of misunderstanding. As instructed by His Divine Grace: “Just as the one sun is the object of vision for many different persons, so the one partial representation of Lord Krsna who lives in the heart of every living entity as the Paramatma is a variously perceived object.” (Adi, 2, 21) There are statements in sastra that seem to discourage one from concerning himself with understanding the Brahman and Supersoul features of the Lord. These statements are there for a variety of reasons, but primarily they exist for the purpose of avoiding confusion for the beginner, or those who have not yet surrendered to Krsna as the Lord of all that be.
These statements also apply to the personally motivated person who has chosen Paramatma as his ultimate goal of life with the motive to attain mystic perfections and impersonal liberation. Such statements also serve to change the thinking of those who are bewildered by the impersonal conception of Supersoul, and therefore have no clue of reality. Devotees who are approaching the transcendental platform of bhakti-yoga should not be discouraged by such statements, but should rather be aware of their deep meaning and of the purpose for which thy are intended. These statements are sometimes referred to as filters or lint traps, which serve the purpose of separating the selfish from the sincere. Thus the main mystery of sastra involves the various perceptions of the real position of Supersoul in relationship with the individual soul. Srila Prabhupada: “The Lord is impersonal, personal, and localized. In His personal feature, He is both in the Paramatma and Syamasundara of Vrndavan, but in His impersonal feature He is neither in the brahmajyoti or the Paramatma.” (1-9-12)
When a mystery is solved, it can then be explained, or revealed so that others can see things clearly. In this way the humble, sincere soul can take advantage of the understanding of others and apply it toward achieving the perfection of life. This is the reason Srila Prabhupada has instructed his disciples to record their realizations and distribute them freely. Understanding and embracing the Vedic conclusion is tantamount to solving all the mysteries of sastra. One who is willing to make the philosophical adjustment needed to conform to that conclusion can very quickly revive his eternal, loving relationship with Krsna from within and without and actually achieve the perfection of life. Love for Krsna is the most valuable commodity in all creation, but real love requires knowing the object of our affection. The more we know Krsna, the more we can love Him, and it is certain that one of the main mysteries of sastra is that both knowledge and love for the Lord are dependent on our relationship with His merciful Supersoul presence. Srila Prabhupada: “As soon as there is a question of devotion, one must consider the relationship between the Supersoul and the individual soul. The service of the individual soul to the Supreme Soul is eternal, nityam, as is clearly stated. So bhakti or devotional service is eternal. One should be established in that philosophical conviction, otherwise it is only a waste of time, ignorance.” (Bg.13, 8-12)
As His Divine Grace has just stated above and in many other places throughout sastra, any attempt to achieve or advance in loving devotional service to Krsna, while disregarding one's relationship with His Supersoul presence is simply an effort in ignorance, a waste of time. Srila Prabhupada has instructed that ignoring the presence of Krsna, thus squandering one's allotted time of life intended for achieving the purpose of life, self-realization, is the very definition of ignorance.
It need be clearly understood that there can be no authentic relationship with any form of Krsna, in any rasa whatsoever, until one becomes purified and transcendentally qualified by contact and communion with His personal localized presence. One who tries to establish a transcendental rasa with Krsna while ignoring the qualifying principle of dovetailing with His personal presence is engaging in a kind of fantasy. Srila Prabhupada has likened such a relationship with a bee trying to enjoy honey from outside the honey jar. Because of disregarding or ignoring the instructions of the spiritual master and the Supreme Lord, speculators do not build their belief system, or faith, on the statements of sastra. Consequently, they do not respect the transcendental design of the Lord and thus they incorrectly think that the direct method of devotional service is to directly serve only His bhagavan feature. His Divine Grace explains the real direct method of devotional service: “The whole process is to understand the real position of the self in relation to the Superself. The indirect process is philosophical speculation, by which, gradually, one may come to the point of Krsna consciousness; and the other process is connecting with everything in Krsna consciousness. Of these two, the path of Krsna consciousness is better because it does not depend on purifying the senses by a philosophical process. Krsna consciousness is itself the purifying process, and by the direct method of devotional service it is simultaneously easy and sublime.” (Bg ch-3, text- 3)
Connecting with everything in Krsna consciousness means taking shelter of all three of the Lord's features by engaging in all nine devotional processes and especially by performing the transcendental principles of religion which result in perfect spiritual understanding. Just as initial surrender to the ultimate form of the Lord only, is a very important point in the life of a karmi or a neophyte devotee, full surrender in complete knowledge of Krsna, is the beginning of real spiritual life for an advancing devotee. Perfect knowledge of the Lord certainly includes knowing all three of His features and as Srila Prabhupada has just instructed, the whole process depends on knowing the real position of the self in relation to the Superself.
With everything Srila Prabhupada has given in his books, a devotee, after years of opportunity for studying, is expected to be on the platform of perfect knowledge.
Srila Prabhupada: “After studying the Vedas and attaining an understanding of the Absolute Truth, one is supposed to be on the platform of perfect knowledge.”(5-11-2)
“Perfect knowledge means to know one's own self and to know the Supreme Self. (Superself). The Supreme Self, and the individual self, although one in quality, are different in quantity. This analytical understanding of knowledge is perfect. Simply to understand, I am not this body, I am spirit, is not perfect knowledge.” (KB v-2 pg.325) “One comes to understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead when one realizes that Vasudeva is both Paramatma and the impersonal Brahman; he is then in perfect knowledge. The words param brahma refer to the shelter of the impersonal Brahman and also of the all-pervading Supersoul.”(9-9-49)
It is not difficult to understand why Supersoul is the center of the whole process because all knowledge and spiritual understanding are revealed by Him and our transcendental, loving relationship with the Lord always begins with our dovetailing union with Him. Misguided devotees may imagine themselves in a confidential rasa with the Lord, and of course, this is also thinking of Krsna, but such meditation, being on the mental platform, is mixed with speculation and imagination and will not protect one from inevitable disappointment and repression because it is not possible to have a transcendental relationship with Krsna while still on the material platform. There is a great difference between enjoying and learning about Krsna through the narrations of His pastimes and imagining oneself in a confidential rasa with the Lord.
Narayana Maharaja has become very popular by encouraging his followers to embrace the higher rasas with Krsna and the gopis, even though they are not transcendentally qualified. Narayana Maharaja preaches that Srila Prabhupada has given only the beginning of spiritual life and that he is giving the essence. That is offensive nonsense. Srila Prabhupada has given everything in his books including instructions to assimilate the essence of sastra until the Vedic conclusion is realized. Upon realizing and embracing the Vedic conclusion, one re-establishes his eternal relationship with the transcendental form of Krsna within one's heart as servant and friend. Only then, through pure, loving devotional service, can we gradually realize our eternal spiritual form and our relationships with the Lord in the spiritual world. Fully surrendered devotees, however, are more interested in pleasing Krsna here and now, in their present bodies, on planet earth, because this is where the action is, or at least where it will be when the time comes. This is the planet where the Lord inaugurated His mission and where the opportunity exists to forward that mission and please Srila Prabhupada and Lord Krsna to an extent not possible at any other place in all creation. A devotee need not overly concern himself about his spiritual form or his relationship with Krsna in the spiritual world because these are revealed to self-realized souls in the course of spiritual devotional service by the grace of Supersoul, who knows us better than we know ourselves.
The first business of a sincere devotee is to become a self-realized soul through the purification of perfect knowledge and thus properly and totally surrender to the Lord. When this is done we can become effective in distributing the grace of Lord Gaura. Srila Prabhupada: “Understanding of the constitution of the body and of the individual soul and the Supersoul constitutes real knowledge Unless one ultimately understands that the Supreme Lord is eternally related with the individual soul, one` s knowledge is imperfect. Upon understanding this perfect knowledge, one surrenders to the Supreme Personality of Godhead.”(7-7-22)
Without self-realization there is no possibility of elevation to the spiritual platform because self-realization is the definition of spiritual platform and until one becomes so situated, he can only fantasize about a relationship with Krsna, the gopis, etc. For the self-realized soul, however, there is no mistake, and no need for fantasy, for his relationship with Krsna is established properly, in the reality of His presence. Sastra states that it is Supersoul, the supreme witness, who determines our next existence, whether it is as a confidential associate of Krsna in Goloka Vrndavana, in another material body, or in the domain of Yamaraja Srila Prabhupada: “The actual decisions concerning the next lives of the living entities are made by the Supersoul and they are carried out by Yamaraja.”(3-15-15) “In any case, one receives an inferior or superior body at the discretion of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Paramatma.”(6-1-49)
Until one has transcended the influence of the modes of material nature, it is risky business to imagine oneself in a confidential relationship with the Lord. Although it is certain that the direction of the Bhagavad-gita is to surrender directly to the ultimate form of Krsna only, one comes to understand that this direction is for the benefit of beginners or neophyte devotees. As explained by Srila Prabhupada: “There are many names and forms of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but Krsna is the Supreme form. Therefore Krsna recommends to neophyte devotees that one should surrender unto Him only. Because neophyte devotees cannot understand what the forms of Narayana, Vasudeva, and Govinda are, Krsna directly says, man ekam. Therefore to follow the direction of the Bhagavad-gita means to surrender unto Krsna, and to surrender in this way is the highest form of bhakti-yoga.”(6-1-19)
Thus there are two directions of sastra, the one in the Bhagavad-gita, designed for the benefit of the beginner, and the one in Srimad-Bhagavatam and the Caitanya-caritamrta, directed toward the advancing devotee. The real direction of the Vedas, the one intended for the advancing devotee, is explained by Srila Prabhupada: “The authorized scriptures direct the individual souls to revive their relationship with the Supersoul. Indeed, the system of yoga (bhakti) is the process of transcending the influence of the material elements by establishing a connection with the purusa known as Paramatma.” (Adi-2-18)
Although the direction of the Gita is intended for neophyte devotees, the importance of following this direction should not be minimized. The great benefit of following the direction of the Bhagavad-gita, which we have all followed, is that one becomes attracted to the ultimate form of Krsna. It is sometimes seen that certain types of yogis, speculators and motivated transcendentalist, being deprived of the benefit of following the direction of the Gita, become deviated from the ultimate goal of life due to their absorption in Brahman or Supersoul only, and because their attraction for the beautiful and original Bhagavan feature of the Lord has not yet been awakened, they become entangled in desire for mystic perfections. Because of harboring such desires within their hearts, instead of cultivating a desire to please Krsna through pure devotional service, they are detoured from the opportunity for reviving their eternal, loving relationship with the supreme form of the Lord. There are both material and spiritual mystic perfections, but Srila Prabhupada instructs that the greatest boon, surpassing all mystic opulences, is when Lord Krsna arranges all future activities of our lives in transcendental loving service to Him.
Similarly, one may initially benefit from following the direction of the Bhagavad-gita, but that benefit is not fully realized until one becomes transcendentally qualified by surrendering to it's conclusion. Only by accepting the Vedic conclusion can one receive the special enlightenment needed to understand the total conception of the Absolute Truth. S.P.: “Not knowing that Brahman, Paramatma and Bhagavan are all features of Krsna, foolish scholars speculate in various way.” (Adi, 2-60) Realizing the actual presence of Krsna and dovetailing with His localized presence is stated as the conclusion of sastra because it is Supersoul who reveals complete knowledge of the three features of the Lord. As confirmed by Srila Prabhupada: “Realization of the Supreme Personality of Godhead's omnipresence is the perfect realization of the Absolute Truth to be attained through the study of the Vedic literatures.”(7-12-15) In other words, one may become attracted to the Bhagavan form of the Lord even while still on the mundane platform, but such attraction is limited by the confines of material intellect.
Until one attains to the same spiritual nature as Krsna by surrendering to His Supersoul presence and thereby becomes dovetailed with His unlimited, transcendental intelligence, he will not be able to associate with Krsna, serve Him or glorify Him in a befitting manner. Srila Prabhupada: “A mundane person cannot offer any prayer or glorify the Supreme Personality of Godhead because he has no realization of the Vedic conclusion.”(4-9-5) One should accept that the direction of the Bhagavad-gita, as beneficial as it is, is still subordinate to it's conclusion and thus advance to the point of approaching the Lord in accordance with the conclusive evidence of the Srimad-Bhagavatam. Srila Prabhupada: “The word prapadye refers to the conclusion of the Bhagavad-gita. The prapadye refers to the individual's surrender to the Supersoul.” (4-22-38)
Self-realization requires realizing and returning to our true spiritual nature by identifying with Krsna's presence. This transcendental reunion is the grace of Lord Gaura and the reason we are chanting His holy name. S.P.: “A pure devotee constantly engaged in the loving service of the Lord is identical with the Lord, who is always seated within his heart.” (Adi, ch.1, 61) A person on the material platform, who is already attracted to and surrendered to the ultimate bhagavan feature of the Lord can easily attain to the true spiritual conception simply by including Supersoul in his surrender and accepting that one's contact with Krsna within his heart is the prime necessity for Krsna consciousness. Those attached to false pride, however, cannot fully surrender to the Lord nor do they know where to find Him. Srila Prabhupada: “Thus whenever one fully surrenders to the Lord, he finds that He is sitting within one` s heart.”(3-20-29)
There is no question of being a part of Lord Caitanya's revolution without reviving our connection with His indwelling presence. To awaken this connection through the potency and the mercy of the holy name, and thus become reestablished in bhagavata-dharma, is the whole object of the Lord's mission. To succeed in distributing Krsna consciousness, one must be conscious of the presence of Krsna in every sphere of existence, and must accept that for as long as we are occupying material bodies our primary connection with the Lord is in association and communication with His Supersoul presence. That is real Krsna consciousness. No one can engage in spiritual devotional service until his communication with Krsna is restored.
One who consistently sees a distinction between Visnu, Supersoul, Krsna, Lord Gaura and other forms of the Lord without accepting the more important issue of Their sameness does not understand Krsna and will not be able to speak of Him, write about Him or effectively engage in His pure devotional service in any functional fashion. Srila Prabhupada: “It is therefore understood that when a devotee writes or speaks about the Supreme Personality of Godhead, his words are dictated by the Lord from within. The Lord, from within, dictates what to do next in order to serve Him.” (4-9-4) To receive dictation from Supersoul one must be convinced that He, and all other forms of the Lord, are in fact, Krsna Himself. Sri Krsnadasa Kaviraja: “He expands Himself in six categories of forms to establish His supremacy throughout the universe. In these six kinds of forms there are innumerable varieties. Although They are many, They are all one; there is no difference between Them.” (Adi, 2, 99&100)
Srila Prabhupada has listed the six kinds of manifest features of the Lord: prabhava (fully potent forms manifested in relation with potencies), vaibhava (partially potent forms manifested in relation with excellences), empowered incarnations, partial incarnations, childhood and boyhood. “ The Personality of Godhead Sri Krsna, whose permanent feature is adolescence, enjoys His transcendental proclivities by performing pastimes in these six forms.” (Adi 2, 100)
So the wondrous mystery of sastra is solved when one realizes that the unlimited forms of the Lord are all Krsna, Himself, and that self-realization, the purpose of life, is achieved only by reviving our connection with His fully potent indwelling presence. This transcendental connection is the beginning of bhakti-yoga, or bhagavata-dharma, our eternal, blissful existence in constant communion with the Lord.
For the intelligent devotee, realizing and reviving his relationship with Krsna within his heart is absolutely everything, because without this revival there is no possibility of knowing Krsna, receiving direction from Krsna, loving Krsna or achieving any real progress in Krsna consciousness. One's preoccupation with material sense gratification based on the dominating propensity acts as poison to his dovetailing reunion with the Lord, who is both the source and the object of perfect knowledge. A submissive attitude is the primary needed ingredient. The dominating mentality directly contradicts the mentality of surrender, thus these two opposing attitudes are completely incompatible. Srila Prabhupada: “The Supreme Personality of Godhead, being situated in everyone` s heart, gives directions in terms of one` s capabilities in taking the instruction. According to one` s attitude, Krsna becomes one` s direct advisor, or Krsna becomes unknown. Krsna is equal to everyone and according to one` s ability to receive the dictation of Krsna, one advances in Krsna consciousness.”(7-1-9) To realize the actual reality of the personal transcendental form of the Supreme Lord in one's heart is not something that can be accomplished with the material mind and intelligence. One should simply surrender to His lotus feet on the strength of conclusive Vedic evidence and thus become a devotee. Srila Prabhupada: “Krsna is actually situated in the heart of every living entity, but only a devotee can realize this fact.” (Adi, 1, 61)
Srila Prabhupada has explained that domination of material energy is the foremost form of sense gratification and any so-called religion based on domination is artificial. Real religion requires the understanding that everyone, either knowing or unknowing, exist in relationship with the Lord and that only He is the dominator. Surrender to His domination is the conclusion of the Vedas. Sri Krsna: “Those who are sworn to sense gratification can not understand the confidential conclusion of Vedic knowledge as explained by Me.” (11-21, 29&30) Purport: “Although understanding the authority of Vedic rituals, they do not accept the ultimate Vedic conclusion and therefore never surrender to God.” The importance of accepting the Vedic conclusion can be clearly seen in this instruction. Only through sincere, submissive surrender to the Lord in the heart can one whose devotion is distorted by the propensity to dominate, immediately become a pure devotee and enjoy perfect knowledge and the spiritual happiness derived from pleasing the Lord through unalloyed devotional service.
Full surrender, the conclusion of sastra, awards freedom from material attachments, the body conception and from those who misuse Vedic knowledge for their own purposes. His Grace confirms the conclusion of sastra: “This is the process of understanding Vedic literature. Only to one who has unflinching faith in the Supreme Lord as well as in the spiritual master is the Vedic conclusion revealed. The conclusion is based on proper understanding of the difference between jiva and Paramatma, the individual soul and the Supersoul. The individual soul is forever a servant of Supersoul and therefore his relationship with Supersoul is to render service. That is called bhakti-yoga.”(4-9-5&6)
Those who become entrapped in the preliminary procedures recommended in sastra, without acquiring respectful regard for their purpose, try to advance themselves by establishing some superficial pecking order based on domination through Vedic rituals. This is the real sense gratification that keeps partially surrendered prarktas in perpetual darkness. Prabhupada: “There are many karmis in the dress of devotees, but the Supreme Personality of Godhead can detect their purpose. The karmis want to use the property of the Lord for their own sense gratification.”(8-9-28) “Sense gratification means domination over material energy.”(4-9-29)
Lord Sri Krsna: “My dear Uddhava, persons dedicated to sense gratification obtained through honoring the Vedic rituals cannot understand that I am situated in everyone's heart and that the entire universe is non different from Me and emanates from Me. Indeed they are just like persons whose eyes are covered by fog.” (11 21 28) Purport: “Persons exploiting Vedic knowledge for bodily gratification are slaughtering themselves with the weapon of materialistic religious principles. The false body conception of life, in which one ignores the eternal soul within the body, is a dense fog of ignorance that blinds our vision of God.”
Lord Gaura's revolution is directed point blank at the body conception of life. Body concept is the meaning of ignorance and the number one enemy of all conditioned souls. As instructed in Srimad Bhagavatam: “Our attachment to the material body and to the bodies of family and friends inevitably leads to unbearable anxiety and suffering. The mind absorbed in the body conception of life cannot possibly advance in self-realization, and thus one's hope for an eternal life of bliss and knowledge is defeated by the objects of one's so called affection. Activities performed in ignorance are beneficial neither for one` s self or for others.” (11-21-24)
In Adi-Lila, chapter one, text ninety-one, Sri Krsnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami describes the glories of Srimad-Bhagavatam and the nature of real religion: “The great scripture Srimad-Bhagavatam, compiled by Mahamuni Vyasadeva from four original verses, describes the most elevated and kindhearted devotees and completely rejects the cheating ways of materially motivated religiosity. It propounds the highest principle of eternal religion, which can factually mitigate the three fold miseries of a living being and award the highest benediction of full prosperity and knowledge. Those willing to hear the message of this great literature in a submissive attitude of service can at once capture the Supreme Lord within their hearts. Therefore there is no need for any other scripture other than Srimad-Bhagavatam.”
One who can capture Krsna within one's heart, by the simple process of full surrender, immediately enters into Bhagavata-dharma, his eternal, transcendental loving relationship with the Lord. Thus freed from the mental plane, such an authentic devotee depends only on Krsna and is totally detached from all aspects of artificial religion, which is presently dominating this movement, this planet and the conditioned souls who reside here. Lord Caitanya's intention is to change this unfortunate situation by lifting all sincere souls to the real spiritual conception of religion through the potency of the holy name and by revealing the authentic approach to full surrender in pure devotional service, as explained in the pages of the Srimad-Bhagavatam.
In his purport of this text, (Adi, 1, 91), Srila Prabhupada further explains the difference between real and artificial religion: “Real religion lies dormant when artificial religion dominates from the mental plane. A living being can awaken this dormant religion by hearing with a pure heart.” “By contact with material nature, the living entities exhibit varied systems of the disease of material consciousness. To cure this material disease is the supreme object of human life. The process that treats this disease is called bhagavata-dharma, or sanatana-dharma - real religion. This is described in the pages of Srimad-Bhagavatam. Therefore anyone who, because of his background of pious activities in previous lives, is anxious to hear Srimad-Bhagavatam immediately realizes the presence of the Supreme Lord within his heart and fulfills the mission of life.”
As His Grace has perfectly explained, the mission of life is fulfilled when one can escape the mental plane by realizing and identifying with the presence of Krsna within one's heart. The reason that Srila Prabhupada's mission has not yet reached the point of being accepted is the lack of perfect knowledge needed to properly present the philosophy to the public. Perfect knowledge means understanding Krsna perfectly. Understanding Krsna entails understanding the three features of the Lord, as well as His energies, His incarnations and expansions. Srila Prabhupada: “Those who do not utilize the Vedic knowledge for that purpose, (to understand Krsna), are known as kuta-yogis, or pseudo transcendentalist, who spoil their lives with ulterior motives.” (2-9-20)
One may attain a theoretical understanding of the Lord by reading or hearing from the mental plane, but when one actually realizes the presence of the Supreme Lord within one's heart and surrenders to Him, one` s relationship with the Lord is revived and thus he achieves real understanding through direct experience by His mercy. It is forgetfulness or neglect of one's relationship with the Paramatma presence of God that is the cause of all ignorance and destruction, as instructed by Srila Prabhupada: “Actually, this forgetfulness of his relationship with Lord Visnu is the cause of his destruction. Anyone who revives his consciousness of the original relationship receives instruction from the Lord.” (3-29-39)
Lord Caitanya wants to grace His devotees with the ability to proceed with His mission and His mercy will come when we are submissive to the source of perfect knowledge. To realize the potency of sincere chanting, one must accept it's purpose.
Your servant,
Jananivasa dasa
